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It is said by many people that we live in a ‘me’ society where everyone is out for themselves. This is a survivalist mentality because people will act and do things that are aligned with their own personal agendas. Sometimes their motivation is out of selfishness or greed, because they’re only thinking in terms of what is best for them. This attitude is so pervasive in our society that we no longer regard it as a negative characteristic. Many consider it to be an admirable trait and that it’s a mark of an ambitious leader. Another very common attitude in modern times is our desire to have what we want when we want it; we want everything on the double. Patience is a virtue, but many people don’t see it this way. These are just a couple of many other influences of culture and society that cleverly persuade us to trade-in Godliness for what we think is self-gain. The dastardly thing is that many of us don’t even realize this trade is happening until we lose something that is very precious or the break-through we’re waiting on continues to be delayed.
Ephesians 1:3-5 tells us to celebrate God because He has lavished every blessing that heaven has on His beloved children in Christ! He didn’t hold back one piece of His goodness but put it all out there for us to enjoy. Even before the foundation of the world, Heavenly Father knew we’d be His and decided to adopt us into His family by bringing us to Himself through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This is what Heavenly Father wanted to do, because it gave Him great pleasure. One of the things we learn very quickly is that God doesn’t rush us through the process of discovering what He’s got stored up for us. We want it all now, but God says, “Not so fast. Wait until you can handle it.”
The Apostle Paul said in Ephesians 1:15-16 that he continually thanked God for believers in the Ephesian church because he heard about their strong faith in the Lord Jesus and their love for others. He prayed that Heavenly Father would give them spiritual wisdom and insight so they could grow in their knowledge of God. Paul knew human nature. He knew that people, even believers, can become so persuaded by those around us and by culture that we begin to eat whatever the world serves; we become conformed to the world around us. In Romans 12:2, God commands us not to do this. Paul reminded folks to draw only from the Source, which is God, because only God ignites within us the spirit of wisdom and revelation about His master plan. We ought to seek revelation like this continually.
Paul experienced firsthand that when we grow in our knowledge of God, it causes us to walk in the Spirit in a greater way. We are entering a season where the full picture of how important it is to walk in the Spirit is painted before our very eyes. It is now being made clear to us that what we perceived as ‘making us wait’ was actually preparation and training in endurance.
One of the most important lessons of spiritual maturity is to learn what is important to God for your own personal life and begin to respond to it. The things we label as critically important are sometimes not as such with Heavenly Father. The things we think we need quick, fast, and in a hurry, are sometimes not aligned with His agenda. Jesus Christ tells us in Matthew 6:8 that Heavenly Father knows what we need before we ask. Philippians 4:19 says that God will supply all our needs from His unlimited, glorious supply which He’s given to us through Jesus Christ. 2Corinthians 3:5 affirms that God is our sufficiency; He’s the Source of all that we need. We should never worry that our needs will outpace the provision of our God, because this is impossible.
Doubt is an offense to our faith. The Lord wants us to transition from a place of trying to push through our own will and agenda to a place of surrendering totally to His Will. Galatians 5:16(NIV) tells us, “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” Living by the flesh is living by what pleases us and allowing our emotions to govern how we respond to life. Romans 8:7 tells us that this kind of mindset and attitude is an enemy against God. So, there can be no doubt that we must relinquish the behaviors that seek to deny Christ Lordship, and bring those thoughts into captivity, so they can be terminated.
No matter the circumstance or condition, our faith must be in God. It must be firmly planted in Him. We must consider the reality that we have assumed a posture in our everyday living that has in some way limited our faith in God. In spiritual infancy, we can get away with this for a while, but there will come a time in life when we will hit a wall. At this point, we shouldn’t shrink in fear or think that God is punishing us. The thing to do is lean into Heavenly Father by listening and waiting on His guidance.
The more we learn about the Christ, the more we are able to walk—live in what we’ve learned. This translate to the spiritual strength to steward the blessings of God. He wants this for us all. And to help us follow the example of Christ and walk in the Spirit, if we ask Him, God will flood our hearts with light and insight. Then we can clearly see how precious we are to Him, and we can see the wealth He’s placed within us through Jesus Christ. We are then charged with the responsibility to share with others His glorious light out of the abundance He has given and revealed in our own hearts. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“We Want It Now, But God Says “Not So Fast””, written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2019. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.
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